B Vitamin Levels Impact Breast Cancer Incidence

BOSTON—A recent cohort study at Harvard Medical School evaluated plasma concentrations of folate, pyridoxal 5-phosphate (PLP; the principal active form of vitamin B6) and vitamin B12 in relation to breast cancer (Am J Clin Nutr. 2008;87(3):734-43). Women with invasive breast cancer (n=848) and individually matched control subjects (n=848) who provided blood samples with no history of cancer or cardiovascular disease (CVD) at baseline in 1993 were evaluated. Plasma concentrations of folate, PLP and vitamin B12 were not associated with overall risk of breast cancer. Women in the highest quintile group relative to those in the lowest quintile had relative risks of 1.42 for folate, 0.91 for PLP and 1.29 for vitamin B12. However, higher folate concentration were moderately associated with an increased risk of developing premenopausal breast cancer (P=.04) and for developing estrogen receptor-positive or progesterone receptor–positive breast tumors; according to the researchers, this association was unexpected and additional research is needed to explain the role of folate in breast cancer development. An inverse association was seen between PLP and postmenopausal breast cancer (P for trend = .04).

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